Team Chara vs. Team Alfredsson tale of the tape

So the rosters for Sunday's 2012 Tim Hortons NHL All-Star Game are set, with Daniel Alfredsson loading up on fellow Swedes and Ottawa teammates, while Zdeno Chara kept two Boston teammates and grabbed a pair of fellow Slovaks.

So who has the advantage, as measured by a tale of the tape (see chart below)? Here's your answer:

Age/size: Team Chara is notably older, averaging 28.6 years of age to 26.9 for Team Alfredsson – a group that includes youngsters like John Tavares and Logan Couture to balance off its 39-year-old captain. Both teams have an average height of 6-foot-1, which is surprising since Chara is the tallest player in NHL history at 6-9. Chara's team averages 204 pounds to 201 for Team Alfredsson.

Experience: Team Chara has a huge edge in All-Star experience, with a combined total of 38 games, more than double Team Alfredsson's 18. Chara's team has seven first-time All-Stars; Alfredsson's has 10. Among position players, Team Chara's 10,227 regular-season games played dwarfs Team Alfredsson's 8,425.

Offense: If you're judging on a career basis, Team Chara has a significant advantage. But considering only the current season, the teams couldn't be much more even when it comes to scoring.

Team Chara members have scored 2,850 regular-season goals, about 20 percent more than Team Alfredsson's 2,286. Chara's squad also has sizable career edges in assists (4,544 to 3,878) and points (7.394 to 6,164).

But this season's totals are almost dead even. Team Alfredsson has the edge in goals (291-265), but Team Chara has put up more assists (473-446), giving it a one-point edge (738-737) in overall points.

Goaltending: There's much less of a career disparity in goaltending than in scoring – but as with offense, the numbers for this season are very close.

The three goaltenders on Team Alfredsson are 428-293-92 (145 more wins than regulation losses), while the three Team Chara goalies are 401-252-92 (149 more wins than regulation losses). Team Alfredsson does have the edge in shutouts at 74-54.

This season, Team Chara's goaltenders have played 115 games to 101 for Team Alfredsson. The three goaltenders picked by Zdeno Chara are 67-37-9; the three chosen by Daniel Alfredsson are 57-27-15. Again, Team Alfredsson does have the edge in shutouts with 16 to 11 for Team Chara.